The $50 difference is nothing, for such a quality multi-media improvement. The ION will also help to justify a “premium” netbook segment, which the netbook vendors can use to improve margins.

I think HD is more important for “nettops” or whatever the desktop equivalent of the netbook is. I like seeing these new Atom based NAS devices with 1 to 2 GB of RAM (like the one from Asus at CES), or the new MSI nettop. The only thing that’s holding me back is the video performance.

But I’d be reluctant to sacrifice battery life to get those.

While 1020p is all the rage and looks great on a 60 inch screen, 720p is just as impressive, and actually plays and looks much better on a netbook’s small screen. I’ve been exceedingly satisfied with the 720p playback on my 2133, it looks much better that regular DVD playback on a larger 14 inch notebook.

I’m anticipating the 2140 may make 1020p playable, but it’s screen won’t support playback at the native res, and lacks a HD output with HDCP. One of the great things about the HP netbook is that they have full-size 2.5″ drives, giving 500GB of storage for a/v files.

If portable multimedia is your dream for a netbook, wait for 2010. By then, you’ll get a nice Medfield netbook with a roomy 2TB drive in it, and who knows what else.

The way Moore’s Law is currently playing out, we don’t get a lot more clock speed, but we do get a lot of transistors per die for smaller size/cost (Atom) or extra features.

As long as there’s effective power gating to keep features from sucking power when I’m not using them, I don’t mind having them.

Moreover, I’m intrigued by the possibility of things like OpenCL, that require a more capable GPU than the 945′s that Intel keeps using.

However, I’m displeased by nVidia’s insistence on keeping their device interfaces secret, so they don’t work well with open source. That’s one thing Intel has going for it.

But the moment I saw this thing running COD 4, I know I’d love to have it.

And IF it will only make netbooks $50 more expensive, then FOR SURE I’ll buy one!
… ‘cos if we look @ASUS N10; the one with GF 9300M costs 150 € MORE!?!
(and because of this pricing, I find if hard to believe, that the NEW GF 9400M will cost 100 € less then GF 9300M)

My one guilty pleasure in the Sims series of games. Sims2 runs okay on the wind, but Sims3 won’t (the minimum requirements are already out and the GMA 950 isn’t on the list). Sims doesn’t require a big gaming rig, but it does require some 3D power. I would love to keep my current set up of very small travel machine and nice big screen at home and be able to play my game too.

I’m not necessarily sold on that concept, but that’s how I see it playing out.